December 19 All day O&A to Oregon Symphony
December 23 Winter Break Begins
January 6 School Resumes
January 6 Library Visit
Homework Due by Friday, December 20th
1. Read for at least 20 minutes every night.
2. Complete at least 30 minutes of math practice (click here for DreamBox).
3. Complete 20 minutes of typing practice.
4. Optional: Compete Paragraph of the Week writing assignment.
Prompt: Write about a time when you cooked or baked something.
Upcoming Out and Abouts
This month, we are using our Out & About time for Fairy Tale Engineering Labs! This week, students can construct a bridge for the Gingerbread Man. On Thursday, we will go into Portland to see the Oregon Symphony's Nutcracker Cirque!
Volunteer Opportunities
1. Breakfast Donations - Cereal or bagels needed this Friday!
2. Library Chaperones - Needed 1/6 and 1/27
3. Out & About Chaperones - Needed 1/28 for Oregon Ballet Theater
Hour Of Code
The Plovers are working to earn some time in the computer lab for Hour of Code! We have a class bingo board and they earn pieces when they show active listening, focus and stewardship. They are so close to getting a 5-in-a-row! Hour of Code is a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify code and show that anybody can learn the basics. The Plovers will be able to try out several self-paced tutorials, including a dance party challenge, which introduce computer science skills such as drag-and-drop programing, creative problem solving, sequencing and patterns, and basic algorithms. To learn more or try out some of the tutorials at home, please visit Hour Of Code Activities.
Weekly Review
Last week, students completed another fairy tale engineering project. They either constructed a raft for the Three Billy Goats Gruff or a house for the Three Little Pigs. Ask your Plover to tell you about the project. Here are some questions to guide you: Was your design successful? How could you tell? Did you try any designs that didn’t work? What surprised you about the project? What frustrated you about the project?
Over Winter Break, you might try your own raft challenge at home! You will need a small tub of water, straws, and pipe cleaners. Try to build a raft that will hold a small action figure or see who can create a raft that holds the most pennies. This makes a fun family challenge! Also, if you are traveling, you might be able to notice different boats, rafts, barges, and other things that float. Observe the shape and design, and talk about how much mass they hold. Then, make guesses about why rafts and boats were invented in the first place!
The Plovers have also been working on castle designs to hang in the hallway for our fairy tale writing unit. Last week, they designed a giant class castle for the bulletin board! First, they talked as a class about what kinds of rooms and features they would like to have in their castle and agreed to leave some things out (like a dungeon). Then, students worked in partners to draw and color in parts of the castle. There has been a lot of great collaborating and cooperation as everybody takes turns adding their designs and ideas to the poster!